Fastball John

Fastball John

From his status as the #17 pick overall in the 1970 June draft to his post-game minor league antics with Goose Gossage, Gorman Thomas and Charlie â€œCountry Chuckâ€ Manuel; the free love and â€œfree agencyâ€ of 1972 California; the tragedy at Spring Training â€˜74; Johnâ€™s role as a pawn in the struggle for clubhouse power between manager Charlie Fox and Bobby Bonds; deep inside the untold story of the Bob Gibson/Dâ€™Acquisto pitching duels; Dr. Frank Jobe and his handling of Johnâ€™s critical arm woes; the endless nightlife and shady characters of 1976 San Francisco; the despair of ex-major leaguers deserted in the 1977 AAA baseball purgatory of sunny Honolulu; go behind the scenes of the since-abandoned Free Agent Re-Entry Draft; the backroom dealings between players and management ahead of the 1981 playersâ€™ strike; the fateful meeting between John and his former owner that may have derailed his career, as well as a late 80â€™s stint in the ill-fated independent league that caught the attention of an old influential friend.

â€œHeinie.â€ Randy. Buzzie. Ronny & The Bear. â€œSweet Matt.â€ â€œDavvy.â€ Marvin. â€œMac.â€ Juan. Jimmie Reese. Gibby & Torre. â€œMoff.â€ Keith. â€œOnti.â€ â€œRas.â€ Pete. â€œSimbaâ€ & Geno, among many others along for the ride.

Featuring a foreword by popular 70's baseball historian Dan Epstein and flavored by music of the era spanning his time in the game, from The Everly Brothers, The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Carpenters, The Temptations, Led Zeppelin, Eagles, David Bowie, Fleetwood Mac to Donna Summer, Nicolette Larson, Blondie, Dave Mason, Don Henley, Pretenders & New Order.

For baseball fans who love the narrative structure of prestige cable dramas like Mad Men and House of Cards, this book is for you.

Itâ€™s the love story between a man and his profession.

Country	USA
Binding	Kindle Edition
Format	Kindle eBook
IsAdultProduct
Label	Instream Books
Manufacturer	Instream Books
NumberOfPages	561
PublicationDate	2016-09-13
Publisher	Instream Books
ReleaseDate	2016-09-13
Studio	Instream Books

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